Today’s post was shared by Workers Compensation and comes from www.businessinsurance.com
(Reuters) — The first-ever implant to fight addiction to opioids, a class of drugs that includes prescription painkillers and heroin, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday.
The matchstick-sized implant, developed by Titan Pharmaceuticals Inc. and privately owned Braeburn Pharmaceuticals, is by design less susceptible to abuse or the illicit resale that plagues existing oral therapies.
Currently, two drugs are predominantly used to treat opioid addiction — methadone, which is dispensed only in government-endorsed clinics, and the less-addictive buprenorphine, which exists as a pill or strip of film.
The implant administers buprenorphine for up to six months after users have been stabilized on the oral form of the drug.
“I intend to make this the most successful implant that’s ever been marketed … and I think it’s absolutely possible given the unmet need,” Braeburn CEO Behshad Sheldon said in an interview ahead of the FDA decision.
Fewer than half of the estimated 2.2 million Americans who need treatment for opioid abuse are receiving help, according to the U.S. Centers for Human and Health Services.
Authorities investigating the death of singer Prince found prescription opioid medication on him, sections of the media had reported. The music legend died one day before he was scheduled to meet a doctor who specializes in addiction treatment, the doctor’s lawyer revealed earlier this month.
Paul Krugman’s July 4 New York Times Op-Ed column, “Trump, Trade and Workers”, picked apart the economic plans posed by Donald Trump in a campaign speech the prior week. Mr. Krugman examined “the general thrust of the speech: the candidate’s claim to be on the side of American workers.” All of the points Mr. Kruman raised are valid. I wish to add a bit of perspective, though, from the world of representing injured and disabled workers: an effective safety net is also necessary for a strong middle class.
Krugman: “What’s important is that voters not mistake tough talk on trade for a pro-worker agenda. No matter what we do on trade, America is going to be mainly a service economy for the foreseeable future. If we want to be a middle-class nation, we need policies that give service-sector workers the essentials of a middle-class life. This means guaranteed health insurance — Obamacare brought insurance to 20 million Americans, but Republicans want to repeal it and also take Medicare away from millions. It means the right of workers to organize and bargain for better wages — which all Republicans oppose. It means adequate support in retirement from Social Security — which Democrats want to expand, but Republicans want to cut and privatize.”
Access to Social Security disability benefits has become difficult to obtain, particularly for younger, middle-aged applicants. Approval rates for applications for Social Security benefits are down across the country but are staggeringly low in some metropolitan areas, such as Seattle. State’s have been under enormous pressure to reduce costs in their workers’ compensation systems, as well.
In Washington State, changes put into place including a major “deform” movement in 2011, have saved money, granted, but nearly all of the savings were taken out of the pockets of injured workers through reductions in benefits.
Implementation of a required Medical Provider Network with increased cost and hassle for physicians has significantly limited access to the best care for Washington’s injured workers. We went from one of the best states in the union for high-quality workers’ compensation insurance to a place where many workers avoid filing claims and seek care under private insurance to get the care they need, quickly.
Without sufficient benefit levels and access to quality medical care, families suffer. An injured worker receiving temporary total disability benefits receives compensation while unable to work, typically between 60 – 70% of the pre-injury wage rate although higher wage earners may receive a far smaller percentage if they bump into the cap on benefit levels. For example, a highly skilled tradesperson, particularly if in a union, may receive compensation at 40 – 50% of pre-injury levels. It’s hard to maintain a middle-class lifestyle on half of your pay, and even harder if it takes months to get authorization for surgery – the road to recovery can be quite long and bumpy.
Washington’s Retro Group program, where employers can reduce premium costs by opting to pay claim costs dollar-for-dollar and can receive refunds of premiums paid if their costs are lower, have inserted a profit motive into what used to be a strong system where all workers and employers shared the cost of all injuries, spreading the burden out and providing predictable coverage expenses. With the Retro Program, employers have a vested interest in denying coverage, reducing benefits, denying treatment – every penny saved goes right back into their pocket. It’s a whole new contentious game. Note that the workers, who in Washington pay ½ of the premiums charged to employers, never get a refund if claim costs are low. It is unfair, lopsided and the fights that ensue between workers and employers over coverage are handled by State agencies, State employees, adding to the State’s expense of running the overall workers’ compensation system and eating into the “savings” gained by the reform efforts.
Workers’ compensation is intended to provide protections to those injured on the job for the purpose of ensuring a speedy recovery and return to employment, hopefully with limited financial impact to the worker and their family. When done right, the protections can save an injured worker from financial ruin. Implemented poorly, the system can add to the physical, emotional and financial pain after an injury.
Today’s post was shared by US Labor Department and comes from blog.dol.gov
Keep workers safe in hot weather with water, rest and shade.
Forecasters are calling for above-average temperatures across much of the country this summer. Are you prepared to beat the heat?
Every year, thousands of workers become ill from working in the heat, and some even die. Construction workers make up about one-third of heat-related worker deaths, but outdoor workers in every industry – particularly agriculture, landscaping, transportation, and oil and gas operations − are at risk when temperatures go up.
Heat-related illnesses and deaths can be prevented. Employers and supervisors can save the lives of workers in hot environments by following these eight simple steps:
Institute a heat acclimatization plan and medical monitoring program. Closely supervise new employees for the first 14 days or until they are fully acclimatized. Most heat-related worker deaths occur in the first 3 days on the job and more than a third occur on the very first day. New and temporary workers are disproportionately affected. If someone has not worked in hot weather for at least a week, their body needs time to adjust.
Encourage workers to drink about 1 cup of water every 15-20 minutes. During prolonged sweating lasting several hours, they should drink sports beverages containing balanced electrolytes.
Provide shaded or air-conditioned rest areas for cooling down, and empower workers to use them.
Provide workers with protective equipment and clothing (such as water-cooled…
Today’s post comes from guest author Rod Rehm, from Rehm, Bennett & Moore.
In January, I wrote about how workers’ compensation has a cost-containment industrial complex that not only harms workers but also is a potential profit generator for groups like private-equity firms.
According to this link from The Wall Street Journal, a private-equity firm named Leonard Green & Partners LP recently submitted an offer to buy an IME company called Exam Works for $2.2 billion. Yes, that’s billion with a B.
“The insurance-defense-industrial-complex has become a multi-billion dollar enterprise,” as was noted on Aleksy Belcher Law Firm’s Facebook page earlier last week (Aleksy Belcher is a workers’ compensation plaintiff’s firm based in Chicago).
The Wall Street Journal article linked above talks about the hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue that Exam Works posted last year and also its purpose.
“It said it serves more than 6,000 clients globally, including property and casualty insurance carriers, law firms, third-party claim administrators and government agencies, helping them manage costs and enhance their risk-management and compliance processes,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
What this means for injured workers and their loved ones is that the big business and added bureaucracy of “cost-containment” may translate to even more profit at the expense of injured workers, going into the private-equity company’s pockets if the sale goes through.
The way IME companies are seen as potential profit centers for private-equity firms is one of the many reasons that if an IME – Independent Medical Exam – or DME – Defense Medical Exam – is ordered for an injured worker, that injured worker should seek the advice of an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer. Workers’ compensation lawyers advocate for injured workers and help them understand the workers’ compensation process, including IMEs, so the playing field of the workers’ compensation process might be a little more even. That way, cost containment, though not as profitable for private-equity firms, can give way to injured workers getting the medical treatment and compensation that they need to move on with their lives.
Having a lung ailment may make it more difficult to obtain coverage for joint replacement.
Today’s post comes from guest author Charlie Domer, from The Domer Law Firm.
A new Medicare rule that took effect April 1, 2016 retools Medicare payments for hip and knee replacements. Patients with serious medical conditions such as heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and lung ailments may not be able to find an orthopaedic surgeon willing to perform the joint replacement because hospitals face financial incentives to avoid patients with a high risk of complications.
Hospitals will be given a “target price” for total joint replacements for the patient’s entire care from the hospital stay to outpatient rehabilitation through 90 days after discharge, according to a new rule from the Center for Medicare Services. If the reimbursement is less than the target price, the hospital may receive an additional payment from Medicare as an incentive for good outcomes. On the other hand, the hospital may be required to pay back part of their reimbursement that goes above the target. The rule is intended to control costs on the $7 Billion Medicare spends for hospital care and for almost one-half million beneficiaries who receive a hip or knee replacement each year. However, since Medicare will pay only one “bundled payment” for the patient’s entire care after total joint replacement surgery, the hospital will be accountable for the quality of care through the incentives and penalties. The surgeon shares responsibility when a patient is re-admitted to the hospital and receives a “black mark” even when the re-admission has nothing to do with the joint replacement. An unintended consequence of this payment model may be “cherry picking” of low risk patients. Patients claiming a work-related connection to joint replacement surgery who have been denied by Medicare may face additional hurdles in obtaining their surgery.
Today’s post comes from guest author Leonard Jernigan, from The Jernigan Law Firm.
Engineered stone countertops, a popular fixture in today’s homes, pose a health risk to workers who cut and finish them. The danger stems from the material the countertops are made from, processed quartz, which contains silica levels up to 90 percent. Silica is linked to a debilitating and potentially deadly lung disease known as silicosis, as well as lung cancer and kidney disease.
While the countertops do not pose a risk to consumers in their homes, they do pose a risk to the workers who cut and finish them before they are installed. When the countertops are cut, silica particles are released into the air, which when breathed in by the workers can start processes leading to silicosis. Manufacturers of the engineered stone countertops assert that worker hazards can be reduced through the use of protective respirators and equipment designed to trap silica dust. Despite this assertion, many safety precautions taken by employers are often inadequate.
The first documented case of silicosis among countertop workers in the United States was reported two years ago. In countries such as Israel and Spain, where engineered stone products gained their popularity, many more countertop workers have been diagnosed with silicosis and have had to undergo lung transplants. The danger of silicosis in the construction industry led OSHA to recently issue new rules requiring construction workers’ silica exposure to be reduced by 80 percent beginning on June 23, 2017.
Work Force Development Center (WFDC) in Mukilteo has received a second safety and health award from the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). This one is for the center’s second worksite for aerospace assembly training.
The worksite is the ninth in the state to be recognized through the START program, which stands for Safety through Achieving Recognition Together. In 2015, the center’s first worksite was the first Washington nonprofit to ever receive the award.
The START award recognizes occupational safety and health excellence which leads to a safer workplace, lower costs and improved morale. It’s modeled after a federal program.
The WFDC is a nonprofit vocational training organization that provides apprenticeships for disabled, socioeconomically disadvantaged or otherwise at-risk high school juniors and seniors in aerospace assembly. Students earn minimum wage and high-school credit while getting valuable experience with the tools and processes in the aerospace industry to prepare them for entering the work force.
The award winning worksite specializes in using Computer Numerical Controlled machine tools that cut, drill and carve out aerospace parts from blocks of titanium, aluminum, nylon and phenolic resin.
“Learning to work safely in an industrial environment is an essential part of our students’ educational experience,” said Carmela Morelli, WFDC Director of Human Resources & Student Services. “We are so proud of our employees and students for their commitment to following the guidance of the L&I safety and health consultants.”
To participate in the program, employers must have an injury rate below their industry’s average for at least a year. They must also allow safety and health experts to visit the worksite and review workplace hazards, examine safety and health programs and interview workers and managers.
“Work Force Development Center is clearly a safety leader in the community that others can learn from,” said Lou Flores, Consultation Program Manager for L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health. “This award is a tribute to the center’s hard work and commitment to making sure that trainees and employees are safe on the job and learn safe work habits that will last a lifetime.”
WFDC has 54 employees and 99 high school-age student trainees from schools in three counties at its aerospace assembly training center worksites in Mulkiteo.
The Northwest Seaport Alliance and Puget Sound Clean Air Agency work together to reduce diesel emissions. The incentive program helping drayage truck owners purchase newer, lower-emission trucks to improve regional air quality recently replaced its 200th truck.
The Seaport Truck Scrappage and Replacements for Air in Puget Sound 2 (ScRAPS 2) is a joint program of The Northwest Seaport Alliance and Puget Sound Clean Air Agency to reduce diesel particulate emissions in the region. It supports the NWSA Clean Truck Program’s target for all port-bound trucks to have model year 2007 or newer engines by Jan. 1, 2018.
About 2,500 trucks visit NWSA terminals each day. ScRAPS 2 encourages owners to replace trucks with engines manufactured between 1994 and 2006 with newer models built to meet updated U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards.
Trucks with engines built after 2007 emit 10 times less particulate pollution than older ones. The PSCAA and NWSA estimate that taking 200 older trucks off Puget Sound roads will result in an annual reduction of 9 tons of diesel particulates and 114 tons of oxides of nitrogen.
ScRAPs 2 reimburses eligible truck owners for part of the cost of a new truck and demolishes and recycles the older model at local vehicle recycling facilities. Truck owners who buy a truck with a model year 2010 engine or newer receive as much as $27,000 in return; a truck with a model year 2007 to 2009 engine yields up to $20,000.
Launched in May 2014, the program was expanded earlier this month to make it easier to qualify for trucks primarily serving the NWSA’s South Harbor. Now 200 trips to either the North or South harbor qualifies truck owners for the incentive program. The program has funding to replace an additional 125 trucks.
Previous ScRAPS programs in Seattle and Tacoma targeted trucks with engines built before 1994 and replaced more than 400 trucks.
Under the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy, adopted in 2008, the ports of Seattle and Tacoma and Vancouver, B.C., committed to reduce emissions from all port-related sources—trucks, cargo equipment, ships and trains. The NWSA Clean Truck Program focuses on meeting the strategy’s goals for trucks.
ScRAPS 2 is funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation/Washington State Department of Transportation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington State Department of Ecology and the NWSA.
Today’s post comes from guest author Thomas Domer, from The Domer Law Firm.
I just returned from New Orleans where I made a presentation to about 150 workers’ compensation lawyers (both for workers and for employers) on “Case and Client Evaluation In Workers’ Compensation”.
Since many in the audience represented insurance companies and employers, I paid particular attention to their response to my presentation. As one would expect, their best chance to win a case on behalf of the employer and insurance carrier occurs when several items come into play:
When there is no actual report of the injury. [Worker’s Tip: No matter how small the work injury, make sure it is reported in some fashion – cell phone, voice recording, or Accident Report and the worker keeps a copy (BEST).]
Failure to report that a work injury occurred to the first treating practitioner (whether Emergency Room, employer-directed medical facility, hospital, or primary care physician). The single most difficult hurdle in a workers’ compensation claim involving a traumatic injury occurs when no report of the injury is found in the initial medical record.
In “Occupational Exposure” cases, no discussion with the doctor about work duties or prior incidents. (In Wisconsin, a worker can recover for workers’ compensation in one of two ways:
A traumatic injury where a single incident has caused the disability (lifting a box, falling, etc.)
Occupational Exposure, where the wear and tear of a worker’s job causes the disability over time. In this latter category, workers routinely do not indicate with any kind of specificity the type of work they perform when they see the doctor.
These three tips can help us as workers’ compensation lawyers win claims, more so than any “Clarence Darrow” court room techniques or strategies.
Photo credit: Art By Doc via Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA
Today’s post was shared by Workers Comp News and comes from www.jdsupra.com
Recently, the ride-sharing program, Uber decided to settle two major class-actions lawsuits, filed in California and Massachusetts. These cases will help define how the company classifies drivers in the future.
The Purpose of the Lawsuits
The drivers in both lawsuits claimed that Uber had misclassified them as independent contractors, when they should have been employees, and that they did so to save money. A switch to hiring employees, rather than relying on independent contractors would have been a major blow to the company’s business model.
Under the terms of the settlement, Uber may continue to classify its drivers as independent contractors. This means that they are not responsible for covering payroll taxes, workers’ unemployment insurance or workers’ compensation for its drivers.
The Implications of the Lawsuits
Although Uber is not responsible for providing workers’ compensation insurance for its drivers, the lawsuits did require some changes. Uber will be paying out 100 million dollars to the drivers involved in the suit and all drivers will now be able to solicit tips from their passengers.
Uber also agreed to assist with the creation of a drivers’ association in the two states where the lawsuits were filed. This is a rare action for a company that considers its drivers to be independent contractors.
Not much information is available about what this association will be responsible for. Uber will be paying for some of the costs of the…
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